Aria (Russian: Ария) is a Russian heavy metal band that was formed in 1985 in Moscow. Although it was not the first Soviet band to play Heavy music, Aria was the first to break through to mainstream media and commercial success.^{[citation needed]} According to several public polls, Aria ranks among top 10 most popular Russian rock bands. Their music resembles the sound of NWOBHM bands, for which they have been dubbed "Russian Iron Maiden" by the media.^{[verification needed]} Most of Aria's lyrics have been written not by the band's members but by professional poets Margarita Pushkina and Alexander Yelin.

Aria is the root of so-called "Aria Family": several bands formed by its former members. In 1987, four ex-members of Aria formed the band Master, who are still considered, along with Aria, one of the most influential Russian metal bands. Vocalist Valery Kipelov, who was the main voice of the band for the majority of albums they have released, departed in 2002 and formed his own heavy-metal band Kipelov.

An aria (Italian for air; plural: arie or arias in common usage) in music was originally any expressive melody, usually, but not always, performed by a singer. The term is now used almost exclusively to describe a self-contained piece for one voice usually with orchestral accompaniment. Perhaps the most common context for arias is opera, although there are many arias that form movements of oratorios and cantatas. Composers also wrote concert arias, which are not part of any larger work, such as "Ah perfido" by Beethoven, and a number of concert arias by Mozart, such as "Conservati fedele".

The aria first appeared in the 14th century when it signified a manner or style of singing or playing. Aria could also mean a melodic scheme (motif) or pattern for singing a poetic pattern, such as a sonnet. It was also attached to instrumental music, though this is no longer the case. Over time, arias evolved from simple melodies into a structured form. In the 17th century, the aria was written in ternary form (A–B–A); these arias were known as da capo arias. The aria later "invaded" the opera repertoire with its many sub-species (Aria cantabile, Aria agitata, Aria di bravura, and so on). By the mid-19th century, many operas became a sequence of arias, reducing the space left for recitative, while other operas (for instance those by Wagner) were entirely through-composed, with no section being readily identifiable as a self-contained aria.

Band may refer to:

Ahmad Shirpacha Zahir (Persian: احمد ظاهر‎ – Aḥmad Zāhir; 14 June 1946 – 14 June 1979) was a singer, songwriter, and composer from Afghanistan. He is widely considered an icon of Afghan music and is sometimes called the "King of Afghan music". His songs are mostly in Persian and based on well-recognized Persian poems, although a few are in Pashto and English. Zahir composed and performed rock and pop music, in a similar style to Elvis Presley. Today, he is regarded as one of the greatest persons in Afghan culture and history.

Zahir was born on 14 June 1946 (Jauza 24, 1325 of the Jalali calendar) in Laghman, Afghanistan. His father, Abdul Zahir, was a royal court doctor, minister of health, Prime Minister of Afghanistan between 1971 and 1972, speaker of the parliament and an influential figure in King Zahir Shah's era who helped write the 1964 Constitution of Afghanistan. Zahir grew up in Kabul and belonged to the Pashtun ethnic background.

Zahir attended Habibia High School in Kabul in the early 1960s. He sang and played the accordion in a band mainly consisting of his friends and classmates including Omar Sultan on guitar, Farid Zaland on congas and Kabir Howaida on piano. The band later became known as the amateur band of Habibia High School and performed in local concerts during celebratory occasions like Nowruz, Eid ul-Fitr,^{[disambiguation needed ]} and Afghan Independence Day.